Inside Columbia's April Prime 2016 by Inside Columbia Magazine

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Prime Magazine

April 2016

Contents

Volume 8, Issue 1

The Outdoor Room Check Out These Landscaping Trends For 2016

Helmi’s Glorious Gardens: Helmi Sheely Has Been Sharing Her Gardening Secrets For 20 Years

17 Prime Time Can’t Miss Events For April 22 Tinseltown Talks Dick Cavett Shares His Favorite Guests And Interviews 24 Tell Me About It Get Angel’s Relationship Advice 26

10 30

Fun & Games Sudoku, Tiger Vision & More

30 Miss Perlman’s Penchant For Dance: Halcyone Perlman Has Taught Thousands Of Students Ballet 34

The Pleasure Of Pedaling Jack Wax Encourages Others To Get Back On The Bike

36 Faces And Places Find Out What Events Are Happening Around Columbia 38

Columbia Confidential Publisher Fred Parry Takes On The Issues Columbians Are Talking About Prime Magazine April 2016

Welcome

Glorious Gardening In this month’s issue of Inside Columbia’s Prime, we focus on gardening. It’s that time of year when the early daffodils and tulips are poking out of the ground. The grass is turning green and people just seem happier to be spending more time outdoors. There are so many seniors who are amazing gardeners that it was difficult to decide who to profile in this issue. Finally we settled on someone who makes it her business to know about plants and gardening. Helmi Sheely is the woman behind Helmi’s Gardens. You may also know her through her 10 years at Superior Garden Center and as a host of KFRU’s “The Garden Spot.” Helmi loves her plants and she loves to get her hands dirty, literally. Our second profile in this issue also fell in love with her vocation. Her appreciation of dance swept over Halcyone Ewalt Perlman at the age of 14 at her parents’ dance studio in Columbia. After making a name for herself in the ballet world, she returned to Columbia and opened the studio now known as the Perlman-Stoy Ballet School. Now 80 years old, she can still be found teaching dance at her studio in Cherry Hill. We have other articles you’ll enjoy reading about in this spring issue. Our reader submission this month is from local writer Jack Wax. He finds pleasure biking on the Katy Trail to change his body chemistry and his mental perspective. If you’ve thought about getting back on a bike, April may be the perfect month to do that. Of course you’ll find your favorite advice column, celebrity column as well as Fun & Games. I hope you enjoy the weather and this issue and we’ll see you in May!

staff Publisher Fred Parry Associate Publisher & Managing Editor Melody Garnett Parry Chief Executive Officer Cathy Atkins Inside Columbia Editor Katherine Foran Editorial Assistant Peg Gill Graphic Designer Trever Griswold Joe Waner Photo Editor L.G. Patterson Marketing Representatives Adam Brietzke Rosemarie Peck Kourtney Pickel Sean Zullo Director Of Customer Retention Gerri Shelton Operations Manager Kalie Clennin Operations Assistant Lilly Smith Finance Manager Brenda Brooks

Melody Parry Associate Publisher Email me at prime@insidecolumbia.net

Prime Magazine is published by OutFront Communications, 1900 N. Providence Road, Suite 324, Columbia, MO 65202, 573-442-1430. Copyright OutFront Communications, 2013. The magazine is published 12 times a year on the first day of every month. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of any editorial or graphic content without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited.

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Distribution Manager John Lapsley Contributing Writers Peg Gill, Pam Ingram, Katherine Foran, Angel Donnette Robertson, Rebecca Smith, Nick Thomas, Jack Wax

SERVING THE BOOMER & SENIOR MARKETS

Prime Magazine April 2016

Outdoor Living

Yard Yearnings Landscaping Trends For 2016 BY PEG GILL

Though attractive to look at, traditional incandescent light bulbs have a higher environmental cost than their counterparts.

Wondering what’s growing in popularity as far as landscaping goes? Inside Columbia has you — and your yard — covered.

HARDSCAPES

Look for many current hardscaping trends to continue. People are spending more and more time in their own back yards. Outdoor living spaces — particularly fire pits and wall seating surrounds — will continue to receive a warm welcome from homeowners. With the availability of comfortable and durable outdoor furnishings, yards can truly be extensions of a home, adding valuable and enjoyable living space for many seasons of the year. “The whole industry is catering to the outdoor room movement,” says Gene Hrdina, owner of Designer Landscape. Some of that focus is being driven by the aging population,

April 2016 Prime Magazine

he says. “People want to stay at home and entertain in their own back yards. We’re seeing outdoor kitchens, pizza ovens, fire pits. We’ve built arbors with fans and gazebos with TVs.” Hrdina says this trend shows no signs of slowing down, especially with the drop in gas prices. “People have more disposable income to spend on their landscaping and outdoor remodels.”

WATER FEATURES Water features will remain popular across all budgets, from inexpensive contained systems in an urn or portable fountain to high-end walls. Another trend will see many homeowners adding lights, colors and sound to their outdoor oases. One trend emerging from Europe is painting fences dark green or dark blue, rather than white, brown or gray.

Prime Magazine April 2016

Then: Green and pink counters and appliances ruled the kitchen.

NATIVE PLANTS | CONTAINER GARDENS On the landscaping front, “layered landscapes” are in, using more trees and shrubs. These feature fewer annuals and more natives, evergreens, conifers and ornamental grasses that offer multi-seasonal appeal. “There are more natives available than there used to be 10 or 15 years ago,” Hrdina says. They’re appealing because most homeowners are interested in low maintenance landscaping. HGTV confirms that low-maintenance gardens, drought-tolerant plants and less turf grass are the new norms in landscape design. Edibles are also being featured front and center. “Peppers are really good in an edible garden,” Hrdina says. “I see a lot of them and I see a lot of container gardening with tomatoes.” HGTV also says over-the-top showy landscapes are out, and that homeowners prefer to invest in quality and natural materials.

CONTINUOUS BLOOMS One development that’s relatively new is the use of continuous bloom flowers. “Knockout roses, which are frost-to-frost, dianthus, Texas scarlet sage, “Happy Returns” repeat bloomer daylily, Shasta daisy, coneflower and black-eyed Susans, they’re all good,” Hrdina says.

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Now: Modern kichens feature stainless steel appliances and granite countertops.

DEER RESISTANT There’s one trend he’s seen in Columbia that will no doubt continue: the use of deer-resistant plants. “Deer-resistant plants are something that people here take a pretty hard look at,” he says. He recommends boxwood, lilac, forsythia and viburnum, as well as perennials such as bleeding heart, iris, foxglove and salvia. Ornamental grasses also work well, Hrdina says, and he is seeing more of them used. Finally, he says “Vinca is a good ground cover that deer don’t like.” Prime Magazine April 2016

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Plants, People and Places Helmi Sheely’s Not-So-Secret Garden By Rebecca French Smith Photos by LG Patterson

On a Sunday morning in early spring, parakeets are chirping somewhere in Helmi’s Gardens as the wind picks up and buffets the plastic on the greenhouse outside. The warm morning sun causes the roof to creak and shift as it expands in the slow heat. Tropical plants, potted trees and the occasional antique almost fill the space between it and the concrete below where seedlings and recently planted cuttings cover almost every square inch of floor space, leaving only a narrow path. “It’s a little cramped in here right now,” says Helmi Sheely, the resident green thumb at the garden center just south of Columbia.

Prime Magazine April 2016

Sheely earned her plant science degree in 1990. She’s happiest when she’s outdoors with her plants.

Origins Of A Green Thumb Born in Germany, Sheely immigrated to the United States with her parents and siblings when she was small, first to New York, then New Orleans and eventually to Salem, Mo. It was in New Orleans she says she discovered her knack for growing things. She joined the local African Violet Society and started growing the violets in her bedroom. “They’d do shows in the local malls. They’d score them and I’d win,” she says. “It used to make these old ladies so mad. I was the youngest African violet society lady by like 40 years, easily.” Her secret? Fish. “I had a fish tank in my room, and I would use the fish tank water to fertilize. It did really well. I’d tell everybody, ‘Fish tank water is the best thing ever.’ ” But the ladies were not as amused. At 50, she still shares her secrets when customers have questions. “There is no common question. You get all sorts of questions. Basically people— 12

April 2016 Prime Magazine

now with phones, which is nice—they come in with a picture of a spot in their yard. They want something for that spot, and they’ll say ‘What can I put here?’ And so we’ll walk around and find out what they like, what their level of interest is and, you know, you go from there.”

while and I was like, ‘Oh my god I can’t stand this. I cannot imagine working that many hours of your life doing something you absolutely hate.’ So this is what I always liked. So, you just gotta figure out how to make a living at it.” She earned her plant science degree from MU in the early 1990s.

A horticulturalist for more than 20 years, Sheely has nurtured the landscapes of prominent clients and local businesses in addition to managing Superior Garden Center for 10 of those years and hosting “The Garden Spot” on KFRU for a couple. But, Sheely had to find her way back to her passion early on after getting her first bachelor’s degree in business economics from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Even with her business degree, Sheely doesn’t care for that part of what she does. “Honestly … if I were happiest, I’d be picking around with the plants, but I don’t get to do that as much as I want to.” She credits the “good people” she works with keeping her on track.

“I always liked plants. I always had a little garden at every house we had, a vegetable garden,” she says. “That was one of the reasons I had such a hard time. I got out of school. I had an economics degree. My dad was a CPA and he wanted us all to help him in the business. I did it for a little

“If she could do the job without having to worry about paying bills and the money, you know working the numbers she’d be much happier,” her husband Mark Sheely agrees. Mark is one of those “good people” she is talking about, along with her bookkeeper, her accountant and key staff members like Jeanne Clark, who works with merchandise, and Jan Sapp, who takes care of maintenance.

Sheely has been a horticulturist for more than 20 years. She’s grown a vegetable garden since the age of five.

Bromeliads and Bob McConnell For all of them, high season is ramping up. Foot traffic is increasing as homeowners, gardeners and those with and without a green thumb begin filtering in to find something to grow. That’s one of Sheely’s favorite parts about what she does. “It’s nice that they hopefully get a plant that they can succeed with,” she says. “People feel like failures when they get plants that they don’t succeed with. “Gardening should be fun. It doesn’t have to be just drudgery.” This season Sheely is promoting bromeliads as the plant du jour. “They’re very trendy right now, very Pinterest,” she says while flipping through images on her phone of various varieties of the “air plant.” She also has some plants that are perhaps more novelty than trendy, like her corpse flower, amorphophallus titanum. “It’s just a cool thing to have,” Sheely says. In addition to the plants, Sheely has always liked animals. (Remember the fish?) Cats for mousing, chickens, a handful of rabbits and a peacock call Helmi’s Gardens home. There are plant “pets,” too. “We have a lot of legacy plants that have been donated and propagate them back out and give [customers] pieces back that they can handle.” Sheely points out one she calls “Bob McConnell.”

“It’s just a brown turkey fig, which is a very common readily available fig, but we renamed the one we have ‘Bob McConnell,’ because his original plant is gone.” Bob McConnell, known in local gardening circles, died in 2015. For many years, he had a fig tree for which he was known, growing in the ground in his greenhouse. “I have a little piece of his fig, his plant, that a lady brought in and said, ‘It’s just too big for me,’ ” Sheely says. “So now we’re propagating Bob’s fig, and it’s just fun to give it out to the gardeners in town because they remember Bob. … I think that’s what makes it fun. It’s the history of the town and the plants and your family.” In the garden center, a Meyer lemon is blooming and several orange trees have fruit on them. The corpse flower is merely a bulb in dirt waiting for its season. Full of figs, Bob McConnell’s fig sit near the center, a smaller version of the original at McConnell’s Plantland. At night from the terrace on the hill south of town, downtown lights and Jesse Hall can be seen in the distance. Sheely is creating a destination and propagating memories for her clients. She wants her garden center to be a place people remember when they’re old: “Remember that garden center we used to go to when we were kids?” v

Top: Sheely sketches a landscape proposal. Middle: Three cats wander the grounds of Helmi’s Gardens. Bottom: Unique plants, such as this air plant glued inside a sea urchin shell, can be found at Helmi’s Gardens. Prime Magazine April 2016

PROMOTION

How To Succeed At Estate Planning

If the only certain things are death and taxes, it makes common sense to plan ahead for both. While many people think only the wealthy need to worry about estate planning, the truth is, making a plan is the best thing you can do for your loved ones, regardless of your financial standing. Rich or poor, old or young, it’s best to write a road map for handling your property and other assets in the event you die unexpectedly. Not having a sound estate plan can result in legal difficulties, great inconvenience, unnecessary taxation and family strife. Taking the time to consult with an estate planning professional can have a significant impact on your lasting legacy. Keeping those thoughts in the forefront, consider these tips for creating a sound, logical estate plan.

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Seek Legal Counsel It’s easy to find a form online to draft a will, but most people would benefit from consulting with an estate planning professional. An experienced lawyer can create documents with your specific circumstances in mind. Everyone should have a will, regardless of age, but that only represents one piece of an estate plan. You should also consider a living will, power of attorney and possibly a trust. Each of these things should be done in consultation with a lawyer with experience developing estate plans for clients whose situations are similar to yours. Life Insurance Policies A life insurance policy can help provide for loved ones in the event of your death. The life insurance market offers a wide range of options, only some of which will

make sense for your situation. Find a professional who can guide you through the possibilities and help you make a suitable choice. Many people choose term life insurance policies because they are generally less expensive than other types of coverage. Whole life policies, annuities and other insurance vehicles may be more appropriate for your circumstances. In some cases, policies may benefit the salesperson more than they do the customer, so know what you’re buying. It’s important that you take all the time you need to learn about your insurance policy before you decide to buy it. If you feel any sense of hesitation or confusion, ask another professional or keep researching until you feel certain you are choosing the best policy for your needs. Funeral Expenses Funerals can cost tens of thousands of dollars. That’s why it is important to plan ahead to cover your funeral expenses. You don’t want to leave your family holding the bag for large bills. Pre-paid funeral plans are a popular choice, or you could simply purchase your burial plot in advance so that one major task will be handled before your passing. It may be uncomfortable to think about, but it is something that must be addressed as part of a solid estate plan. Visit funeral homes in your area to discuss the types of prepayment options they offer. Communication Is Key Don’t keep your family in the dark about your estate plan. Telling them in general terms what to expect in case of your unexpected death could head off estate disputes and heartache. This is another area in which a good estate planner can be helpful. Estate planning is their professional focus, and that includes the complicated family dynamics and concerns that can frequently accompany the process. With the right estate plan and experienced professionals to help, your estate can be a blessing that your heirs will treasure for the rest of their lives. v

Prime Magazine April 2016

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Prime Time

April 2016 APRIL 1 Put on your favorite little black dress for this ladies-only 2016 Little Black Dress event at Southwell Complex on the Columbia College campus. The evening benefits True North emergency shelter, which provides safety and services for victims of domestic and sexual violence. Festivities include a band and dance floor, appetizers and a cash bar, a fashion show, raffle drawings, door prizes and more. You must be 18 or older to attend. $50; 6 p.m.; 700 Range Line St.; www.littleblackdresscolumbia.com

APRIL 2 Bring your kids and kites for a fun Kite Flying Day at Douglass Park! This is a great chance for families to fly kites just like the good ol’ days! A number of kites will be given to children who do not have one to fly. Contest categories are Largest Flying Kite, Smallest Flying Kite and the Highest Flyer. Prizes will be awarded to winners. Rain date is Saturday, April 18. Call 573-817-5077 for more information. Free; 12 to 2 p.m.; 400 N. Providence Road; www.gocolumbiamo.com/ParksandRec

APRIL 7–10, 14–17, 21–24 Columbia Entertainment Company presents “The Dixie Swim Club.” Five Southern women, whose friendships began years ago on their college swim team, set aside a long weekend every August to recharge those relationships. Free from husbands, kids and jobs, they meet at the same beach cottage on North Carolina’s Outer Banks to catch up, laugh and meddle in each other’s lives. Opening night, all tickets $10, other nights $12 adults, $10 children, students & seniors; 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. Sunday matinee; 1800 Nelwood Drive; 573-4743699; www.cectheatre.org

APRIL 2 The University Concert Series presents Hal Holbrook in “Mark Twain Tonight” in Jesse Auditorium. Holbrook reprises his magnificent portrayal of legendary American author, humorist and storyteller Mark Twain. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to see the critically acclaimed and longest-running show in American theater history. From $34; 7 p.m.; Jesse Hall (MU campus); 573-882-3781; www.concertseries.org

APRIL 8–10 Join Stephens College as it presents its New Works Dance Concert in the Warehouse Theatre. Members of the Stephens Dance Company take on adjudicated student choreography, performing vibrant new works that hold up a mirror to the future. $8 adults, $6 students & seniors; 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. Sunday matinee; 104 Willis Ave.; 573-8767199; www.stephens.edu/events

APRIL 11 The University Concert Series presents The Chancellor’s Art Showcase at the Missouri Theatre. This annual concert features a collaboration of arts from

across the MU campus, including the School of Music, the departments of art and theatre, Mizzou Botanic Garden and more! $10 adults, $8 staff/faculty, $5 MU student; 7:30 p.m.; 203 S. Ninth St.; 573-882-3781; www.concertseries.org

APRIL 16 Pop over to The District for the annual Spring Shop Hop. Shoppers can visit their favorite downtown stores while enjoying complimentary refreshments, live demonstrations and trunk shows at each stop. Free; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; downtown Columbia; 573-442-6816; www.discoverthedistrict.com/events Prime Magazine April 2016

APRIL 16 Join the Columbia Kidney Walk, part of the nation’s largest walk to fight kidney disease, at Stephens Lake Park. This noncompetitive event focuses on the prevention of chronic kidney disease and awareness of the need for organ donation. The day includes a 1- to 2-mile walk and a meeting site filled with family-friendly activities. Free; 8:30 a.m. to noon; 2001 E. Broadway; 913-2621551; www.kidneywalk.org

APRIL 16 Have a good time for a good cause at the ninth annual Rainbow House Masquerade Ball at the Holiday Inn Executive Center. This year’s “Night of Heroes” begins with a cocktail party, followed by gourmet hors d’oeuvres, games, raffles, a complimentary photo booth, butlered dessert, DJ and dancing. The evening will also include live auction packages and the royal candidate coronation, recognizing those who raise the most money for the fundraiser. Proceeds benefit Rainbow House and support its mission to prevent child abuse and neglect. From $115 individual supporter; 7 p.m.; 2200 I-70 Drive S.W.; 573-747-6600, ext. 2114; www.rainbowhousecolumbia.org

APRIL 16 The Third Goal Film Fest at the Missouri Theatre features documentary and narrative films set around the world. Hosted by the Central Missouri Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, the event aims to advance the Peace Corps’ Third Goal: “Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.” Free; all day; 203 S. Ninth St.; www.thirdgoalfilmfest.org 18

April 2016 Prime Magazine

APRIL 17 The Missouri Symphony Conservatory presents its fifth annual Serenade, A Benefit For Young Musicians at the MU University Club. Enjoy an elegant evening with wine and food, plus exciting live and silent auctions. Talented young musicians of the Missouri Symphony Conservatory will perform instrumental and vocal selections from a variety of repertoires. Proceeds benefit the conservatory’s orchestra and choral ensembles. $50 individual, $500 table of 10; 5 to 8 p.m.; 704 Conley Ave.; 573-8750600; www.mosymphonysociety.org

APRIL 21 Hear two musical giants from the Russian tradition in one dynamic evening when the University Concert Series presents MU Choral Union: “Alexander Nevsky & Symphony of Psalms” in Jesse Auditorium. $19 adults, $14 faculty/staff, $9 youth & MU student; 7 p.m.; Jesse Hall (MU campus); 573-882-3781; www.concertseries.org

APRIL 23 The Unbound Book Festival is a new event, celebrating literature of all kinds. The inaugural festival, featuring nationally recognized and best-selling authors across many genres, takes place at various venues on the Stephens College campus. Free; all day; Stephens College; www.unboundbookfestival.com

APRIL 23 Join Rainbow House for the Rainbow House Spring Fair at Flat Branch Park. Enjoy free games, prizes, face painting, bounce houses, food and more. The fair is in support of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Free; 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; 101 S. Fourth St.; 573-474-6600; www.rainbowhousecolumbia.org Prime Magazine April 2016

APRIL 24 Run to raise funds for those battling brain cancer in the 7th Annual Head for the Cure 5k fundraiser at Stephens Lake Park. The event includes a 100-yard dash “Kids Fun Run” for children age 10 and younger. $15 Kids Fun Run, $30 to $40 for 5k; 8 a.m.; 2001 E. Broadway; www.headforthecure.org

APRIL 27

APRIL 24 The Columbia Area Earth Day Festival will feature live music, kid-friendly vendors and a Kids’ Park. The festivities, centered on Eighth and Elm streets, will also feature an “Eco Avenue,” with displays by organizations working to promote a sustainable future. Rain date is Sunday, May 1. Free; noon to 7 p.m.; downtown Columbia; 573-875-0359; www.columbiaearthday.org

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Come out to the Target parking lot at Columbia Mall for Tons of Trucks. Vehicles of all shapes and sizes will be on display for you to admire, climb on and sit in. This event is free and will take place rain or shine. Co-sponsored by Columbia Mall and NASH-FM radio, KBBM-FM 101.1. Free; 4 to 7 p.m.; 2400 Bernadette Drive; 573-874-7460; www. gocolumbiamo.com/ParksandRec

APRIL 27–31 The MU theatre department presents Shakespeare’s comedic classic “Much Ado About Nothing” in Rhynsburger Theatre. Claudio and Hero fall in love

and plan to get married, until the villainous Don John slanders Hero. The wedding is ruined and Hero faints. Her family pretends that Hero died from shock, and Don John’s evil plan is soon revealed as Claudio mourns Hero’s death. Will the marriage continue as planned? $12 adults, $10 faculty/ staff/students/seniors; 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. Sunday matinee; Hitt Street and University Avenue (MU campus); 573-882-PLAY (882-7529); www.theatremissouri.edu/onstage

APRIL 29–May 1 The Stephens College theatre department’s season ends with “Cabaret” at Macklanburg Playhouse. Set in 1931, this timeless musical explores life in an age of distress as a young writer examines the society imploding around him. This iconic musical features well-known numbers such as “Maybe This Time,” “Cabaret” and “Willkommen.” $16 adults, $8 students & seniors; 7:30 p.m. with 2 p.m. Sunday matinee; 100 Willis Ave.; 573-876-7199; www.stephens.edu/events

Save The Date MAY 19

APRIL 30 Watch the 5th Annual Float Your Boat For The Food Bank, a cardboard boat race at Bass Pro Shop that raises funds for The Food Bank for Central & Northeast Missouri. Teams build themed boats to race and win unique prizes. The entries can get pretty crazy and creative! The race is presented by the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. Free; 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; 3101 Bass Pro Drive; 573-864-6641; www.floatforthefoodbank.org

The 10th annual Dancing with Missouri Stars at the Holiday Inn Expo Center pairs prominent members of the mid-Missouri community with a Missouri Contemporary Ballet professional to compete for the prestigious DWMS trophy. One dance couple will include a pro from the Ballroom Academy of Columbia. $20 adults, $15 students; 7 p.m.; 2200 I-70 Drive S.W.; 573-219-7134; www.missouricontemporaryballet.com

than 60 current and vintage military aircraft will be on display, along with a packed schedule of thrilling aerobatic performances. Free; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; 11300 S. Airport Drive; www.salute.org

MAY 28–29 Things will be looking up when the 28th annual Salute to Veterans Memorial Day Weekend Celebration & Airshow returns to Columbia Regional Airport for 2016. This year, for the first time ever in the United States, the air show will include a demonstration by a World War II de Havilland Vampire jet, the world’s first single-engine jet fighter! More

STAY CONNECTED

Submit your event to our online calendar, the comprehensive digital guide to what’s happening in mid-Missouri. Simply visit www.InsideColumbia.net/Calendar and register an account. Fill in the event’s information in a brief form and click Save.

Prime Magazine April 2016

Tinseltown Talks

Vintage Cavett Returns To TV

The battle for late-night talk show dominance is nothing new to TV audiences. In the 60s and 70s, three prominent hosts sometimes went head-to-head for the coveted ratings bragging rights. “There was a time when Johnny Carson, Merv Griffin and myself were all opposite each other,” notes Dick Cavett from his home in New York. With the addition of “The Dick Cavett Show” to the Decades Network line-up at the beginning of February (see www.decades.com for schedule), the trio of former competitors are again filling late-night niches, this time as reruns on cable networks – Carson’s “Tonight Show” on Antenna TV since January and “The Merv Griffin Show” on getTV since last October. “We all had great entertaining guests, but it was also a rough period for America – Vietnam, Nixon, civil rights and a bevy of assassinations,” says Cavett. “People seem to like the nostalgia of these old shows, even if it means looking back at troubled times.” Transplanted from the Midwest to New York, Cavett began his journey to late-night as a copy boy for Time magazine in 1960. After sending some jokes to then “Tonight Show” host Jack Paar, he was soon hired as a writer. Throughout the 60s, Cavett continued to write for others, including Carson, as well as tackling stand-up himself, but eventually inherited his own daytime show at ABC in 1968. Known for his in-depth and wellresearched interviews, enlivened with a touch of witty commentary,

April 2016 Prime Magazine

PHOTO CREDIT KEITH MUNYAN

BY NICK THOMAS

Above: DIck Cavett today. Below: Marlon Brando appearing on “The Dick Cavett Show.”

Groucho Marx appearing on “The Dick Cavett Show.” Cavett soon graduated from daytime to late-night as “The Dick Cavett Show” attracted guests that competitors envied. “Fred Astaire rarely gave interviews, but wanted to come on my show,” Cavett says. “When he did, he danced for God’s sake, and the audience went wild.” But not all Cavett’s guests were so obliging, such David Bowie’s 1974 tense appearance in which the singer fidgeted with a cane throughout the interview.

“He was the single most nervous guest I ever had,” notes Cavett. “I wanted to take that cane and throw it in the orchestra.” A year earlier, Marlon Brando’s appearance was a scoop, although the actor preferred to discuss the plight of Native Americans rather than acting. “When I asked for his thoughts on the success of ‘The Godfather’ movie, he mumbled that he didn’t want to talk about films,” recalled Cavett. “So I quipped ‘Did you like the book, The Godfather?’ That got a big laugh from the audience and after he paused, he threw me that million dollar Brando grin.” A huge Marx Brothers fan, Groucho Marx was one of Cavett’s early guests. “Groucho came on with his writing friend Harry Ruby and it was pure gold. But that’s one of the early episodes that went missing, probably recorded over when studios reused videotapes. It still gives me bad dreams to think the tape might have been turned into ‘Let’s Make a Deal,’” he says.

Cavett became friends with Groucho, but says that was an exception, rather than the rule. He was also more than just a rival to one of his late-night competitors. “Johnny Carson and I were actually good friends,” Cavett says, who turns 80 in November. “About a year before he died, I had a wonderful evening with him at a restaurant and we talked for hours about our shows and some of the guests we had over the years.” Many were among the greatest celebrities of the Twentieth Century. “People have been asking me constantly over the years if they will ever see all those full episodes of ‘The Dick Cavett Show’ on TV again,” he said. “Well now they can.” Visit www.dickcavettshow.com for the episodes. v Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University in Montgomery, Ala. His features and columns have appeared in more than 600 newspapers and magazines. Follow him on Twitter @TinseltownTalks.

Prime Magazine April 2016

Prime Advice

Tell Me About It WITH ANGEL DONNETTE ROBERTSON

Every month we have a relationship expert who answers questions from our readers.

My husband and I have had the same group of friends for years. Once or twice a month, we all have dinner together. Recently, a widower in the group asked me to join him for a meal, just the two of us. He wants to talk to me about his late wife, who was one of my closest friends. However, she passed away two years ago and he has been making me — and my husband — feel uncomfortable the last couple months, although I can’t really pinpoint any questionable behavior. Are we overreacting? Am I a poor friend if I refuse?

Not eating dinner alone with a person of the opposite sex is a perfectly reasonable boundary for any couple, even when both partners are comfortable with the friend. Each couple is allowed the unconditional boundaries required to keep the relationship safe. So, your friend’s behavior could possibly not even factor into your decision. However, if you are not comfortable with him, you absolutely should refuse the invitation. Sometimes we can’t identify an actual behavior that causes our unease. We just have an instinctive reaction, a feeling that something is not quite right. Simply, we don’t feel safe. Of course, our “instincts” aren’t always perfect. Some of us have been trained to react to certain behaviors, even though those behaviors aren’t always “bad.” For example, a child of an abusive alcoholic may always instinctively avoid people who are drinking, even in moderation. Yet, ignoring unease seems a little naïve. You doubt your friend’s reasons for the private dinner. You’ve known him for years and feel that his behavior towards you is “off.” Why wouldn’t you trust yourself ? After all, can he have any legitimate objection to your husband’s presence at dinner? He can either meet with you and your husband or find another friend with whom to share his thoughts.

My friend’s husband, due to a recent diagnosis, has been in and out of the hospital. Some of his hospital stays have lasted several days, even weeks. I want to help. But I’ve never stayed in a hospital or cared for an ailing family member, and I don’t know what to do. So, I always end up doing nothing. Any ideas for the next time?

Any hospital stay — but especially a lengthy one — creates stress on the patient and the family. Loneliness creeps in. Expenses rack up. Responsibilities are untended. Usually, a friend visiting breaks up the monotony and loneliness, especially during daytime hours. If you think the family may not want visitors, you can ask first. You may also want to check a good time to visit, since a patient may have therapy or other distractions to work around. If you cannot visit, or they do not want visitors, you can send cards. You can call or text. Just reach out, so that they know they are not forgotten. You can also deliver a goodies bag. Include books or games or items specific to a known hobby. If you like to cook, homemade snacks or meals will give them a break from hospital or fast food. Of course, you will want to respect any dietary restrictions. If you are not a cook, you can still bring food, especially any particular snack you know the patient or family likes. Families spend money on gas as well as at the hospital cafeteria and local restaurants, so gift cards may lift some of the financial burden. Even a roll of quarters to use in the vending machines will offer some convenience. Also, if you are comfortable with the family and they are comfortable with you, you can take over some of their household chores. Take the trash to the end of the road on the pick-up day. Mow the grass. Pick up the mail. If they have children, you can offer to babysit or to run children to activities. Most patients and their families appreciate whatever you can give so don’t let uncertainty keep you from offering. They will be glad to know you care. v Angel Donnette Robertson is not a professional counselor, but she has a lifelong appreciation for the beauty and complications of relationships.

Have a relationship question for Angel? Contact her through her blog at www.angeldonnette.wordpress.com. She will select reader questions to answer, along with questions she finds, in upcoming issues of Inside Columbia’s Prime. 24

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Prime Magazine April 2016

Fun & Games

THEME: THINK SPRING 40. *BEFORE YOU SPRING CLEAN YOU MAKE ONE? 41. MANET’S AND GAUGUIN’S CONTEMPORARY

44. *”SPRING TO MIND” OR “SPRING INTO ACTION,” E.G.

20. RED-____ LIKE RUDOLPH

46. TABLE MINERAL

22. HERMEY THE DENTIST, E.G.

47. EQUAL

24. WASTED-LOOKING

48. CORRESPONDENCE FRIEND

25. *POPULAR SPRING FLOWER

50. PART OF ROM

26. COMMENT TO THE AUDIENCE

55. PINE JUICE

61. *JAPANESE SPRING BLOSSOM

32. PART OF EYE CONTAINING IRIS, PL.

64. KNUCKLEHEAD

33. MARILYN MONROE’S GIVEN NAME

67. MADE COW NOISE

34. PRONGED, AS IN THREE-____ FORK

69. OLD HAT

36. “CUT THAT OUT!”

70. JUNE HONOREE

38. IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL

71. MUSCAT RESIDENT

42. BILLS UNDER MATTRESS

72. #23 ACROSS, PL.

45. LIKE “THE MARTIAN” MISSION

74. RELATING TO SCANDINAVIA

49. DICAPRIO TO HIS FRIENDS? 51. NATURE SPIRIT IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY

DOWN

54. OOZE OUT

1. *MASTERS TOURNAMENT NETWORK

56. MOVIE TRAILER, E.G.

2. MARS, TO THE GREEKS

ACROSS

16. STIFF HAIR OR BRISTLES

24. “STOP!” TO MARCHERS

3. “PRO” FOLLOWER

1. BOAT LOAD

17. KAN. NEIGHBOR

25. FEATHER GLUE

4. EXOTIC JELLY FLAVOR

6. LINE OF WORK

28. WORLD’S LARGEST CONTINENT

5. IROQUOIS TRIBE

9. STAIRWAY ALTERNATIVE

18. HOLY SEE LOYALIST PRACTICING DIFFERENT RITES

13. HITLER’S MISTRESS

19. *DAYLIGHT ____ TIME

14. HIGH OR LOW CARD

21. *SPRING IS A SYMBOL OF THIS

April 2016 Prime Magazine

29. *____ OF MARCH, OR MARCH 15 31. “THE ____ GO MARCHING”

73. MAMA SHEEP

27. PINE PRODUCT

57. *VERNAL EVENT

65. WEAR AND TEAR

12. BEATEN BY WALKERS 15. DIFFICULT TO DETECT

53. AS OPPOSED TO “WANT”

23. MUCH OF THIS ABOUT NOTHING?

11. CASTLE’S LINE OF DEFENSE

43. SEASIDE BIRD

52. *SPRING IS A CURE FOR ____, ACR.

15. COUNTRY ON SAMOAN ISLANDS

10. GULF V.I.P.

57. COCOYAM 58. LEG MUSCLE 59. “DO ____ OTHERS AS...” 60. FROSTS A CAKE 61. FORMALLY SURRENDER

30. TO SHOW OFF

6. “MORE ____ FOR THE BUCK”

35. FUNCTIONS

7. *IT DISSIPATES IN SPRING

63. STRONG DESIRES

37. JITTERY

8. STRIPED EQUINE

66. HORROR MOVIE SERIES

39. END OF A POEM

9. RAJA’S WIFE

68. ONE OF A SET OF DICE

62. LION’S WARNING

PUZZLE SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 37

Prime Magazine April 2016

Fun & Games Sudoku

Do You Have Tiger Vision? We’ve hidden this tiger face somewhere in the magazine. Find it, and send an email to prime@insidecolumbia.net telling us the page number where the tiger is hiding. Readers with a correct answer by April 30 will be entered into a drawing for a $25 gift card to Smokin’ Chicks BBQ.

WINNER! Congratulations to Kathy Hansen, winner of our March Tiger Vision contest and a $25 gift card to Smokin’ Chicks BBQ!

Cryptogram Decipher this quote by unraveling the secret code. Each letter stands for another letter. We’ve given you a few hints to get you started.

PUZZLE SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 37

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Prime Magazine April 2016

At the age of 14, Halcyone fell in love with ballet. She went to New York to study dance in her late teens. 30

April 2016 Prime Magazine

Halcyone Ewalt Perlman:

The Lady And The Dancer By Pamela Ingram • Photos By LG Patterson Anyone who’s ever met 80-yearold dance instructor, Halcyone Ewalt Perlman, will readily agree that she’s a lady, and a lovely one at that. She’s an artist with a penchant for beauty and her south-side Columbia home is evidence of that. There are fresh flower bouquets sprinkled throughout the room along with quite a few of the treasures she’s collected during her many trips abroad: little porcelain boxes from Europe and Asia, paintings and sculptures. She loves opera, film, great books, animals and nature, but most of all, she loves beautiful dance. At barely five feet tall, “Miss Perlman,” as her devoted students affectionately call her, readily admits to being a little old

fashioned. She doesn’t have a personal Facebook page and only communicates by hand-written letters. “My friends love getting my letters,” she explains. “Those are the people I like to give my news to,” she explains. Not the whole world-wideweb. You will find a Perlman-Stoy Ballet School Facebook page, but someone else is writing those daily posts, not Halcyone Ewalt Perlman. She does, however, admit to having used her mother’s antique Smith Corona typewriter until she could no longer find ribbons for it. She owns a cell phone, “but right now, I cannot find it,” she confesses. “I use it mostly for emergencies and to make calls while traveling.”

Prime Magazine April 2016

Left: Perlman grew up in downtown Columbia, living above her parents’ dance studio.

Her Early Years Once when preparing her teen ballet students to perform at an outdoor festival in downtown Columbia, she sent home notes admonishing parents to make sure their girls covered up before and after the performance because it simply was not “appropriate” for young ladies to be seen out in public wearing dance wear. Yes, Halcyone Ewalt Perlman, founder and co-director of the Perlman-Stoy Dance Studio, bears all the traits of someone who’s attended one of those fine, East Coast finishing schools. In reality, though, she grew up in downtown Columbia on the southwest corner of Ninth and Locust Streets upstairs over the, now defunct, White Eagle Dairy. “We had the second floor of the building 32

April 2016 Prime Magazine

– it was part house and part dance studio,” she recalls. She’s never forgotten the steep stairway that led up to their second floor home and dance studio because Santa once littered those stairs with a trail of books for her. Her parents, Marietta Ewalt and Sam Perlman, began teaching ballet, tap and ballroom dancing from their second floor studio in 1933. To date, Perlman has taught thousands of dance students how to plié, pirouette, stand on pointe, and how to behave like a professional onstage, but growing up an only child, she initially had little interest in following in her parents’ dance footsteps. “I wanted to be an entomologist because I had a friend who was a bug specialist and I remember him giving me a snake which I kept until it escaped,” she explains. “I loved all animals and considered being a veterinarian.” Not a dancer. She loved music and played piano and cello for a while. To Perlman, her parents’ passion for dance was “simply their work” and she took it for granted. It wasn’t until around the age of 14 that she fell in love

with dance. When she tries to describe her transition to dance-lover, she says, “It swept over me” and that’s when she began taking dance lessons from her parents. She was so enthralled with dance that she left high school at 16 and headed to Dallas, Texas, to study with famed Russian ballerina, Alexandra Danilova. “And my mother was all for it,” she says with a little twinkle in her eyes. In her late teens, accompanied by her grandmother, she went to New York to study with another famous Russian, dancerchoreographer Igor Schwezoff. While there, she also took classes at the American School of Ballet. Although some people complained about the anonymity of life in the big city, not Perlman. “I loved it,” she readily admits.

Her Return To Columbia Perlman’s risky decision to pursue dance in lieu of finishing high school obviously paid off. She eventually returned to Columbia and took over leadership of her parents’ dance school. Today, the Perlman-Stoy School of Ballet and its performance wing, the Mid-Missouri Dance Theatre, stand toe-to-toe with the best dance schools in the world. Former Bolshoi ballerina, Nina Loory, met Perlman shortly after Loory moved to Columbia from Russia in 1997. Loory danced with the world-famous Russian ballet for 20 years

While Stoy was still in high school, Perlman asked her to consider teaching alongside her. “I remember being thrilled to my toes and so honored when she asked me to consider teaching in her studio,” Stoy says. She tucked Perlman’s offer away and continued dancing with her until she headed off to college. She subsequently studied, performed and taught dance in Canada, New York and London, and even at Stephen’s College but always dreamed of returning to Perlman’s studio to teach alongside her mentor and friend. Stoy became the school’s co-director five years ago. Fifty-six-year-old Susan Fields, a retired Montessori teacher, began studying with Perlman at the age of six and to this day, continues to attend adult classes at the Perlman-Stoy School of Ballet. During Fields’ teen years, Perlman was not only her ballet instructor, she was counselor and mentor as well.

Top Left: Last month Perlman received the Missouri Council of Arts Award. Above: Perlman’s students are taught poise, grace and professionalism onstage. and, after retiring from the stage, became their repertoire chief. Because she spent decades in the world of classical ballet, both on stage and behind the scenes, Loory knows excellence when she sees it! “I think Columbia people have to appreciate the fact that Halcyone created this school and maintains it at such a high professional level,” Loory says. “Halcyone’s school is in a small university town - not like big schools on the east or west coast… She’s an ideal teacher who absorbs the best of each of her teachers.” Shortly after Loory moved to Columbia, she asked Halcyone’s permission to attend her classes and was a regular there for the 12 years she lived in Columbia. “She choreographs things her students can do but always pushes them to the next step, and she always picks the best classical music. She never goes cheap,” insists Loory, who now lives in New York and is the artistic director of the International Ballet Prize, Benois de la Danse, an Academy Awards-like ceremony for the international dance community. “Miss Perlman” also has shaped Nancy Stoy’s dance career. When, then-13-yearold Stoy moved to Columbia, she came with an impressive resume with years of good ballet training and was impressed with Perlman’s dance pedigree. “When my parents were looking for a ballet studio,

they immediately recognized the quality of Halcyone’s studio,” Stoy says. She had studied with luminaries who had so much influence in the ballet world.” By the age of 16, Stoy was taking up to six classes a day. “She really is a first-class teacher. She’s artistic and elegant,” Stoy says.

Her Relationship With Others Stoy’s relationship with Perlman, however, goes way beyond dance training. “I get very emotional when I talk about her. She’s been my mentor, good friend and colleague,” Stoy muses. “I mean, when you grow up with somebody for over 50 years, that’s a good long friendship.” According to Stoy, Perlman’s artistry and choreography highlight her students’ strengths without drawing attention to their weak areas. “She shows the most beautiful parts of their potential. It’s all art above tricks - quality not quantity,” Stoy continues. “She wants her students to finish each turn beautifully. She’d say ‘Give me two or three good turns and finish on the money!’” If a student happens to stumble or fall during one of their annual spring dance concerts at the Rhynsburger Theater, they’re trained to get up and continue dancing like a true professional. Even her youngest pre-ballet and elementary dance students exhibit uncharacteristic poise, grace and professionalism onstage.

“She saved my life more than once because I grew up in the 80s – a time full of drugs, alcohol and disco. It was a time of great social experimenting and if I had not had the ballet studio, I might not be alive today, because, as a teen, I was a risk taker. She exposed me to something that no one else could have,” Fields explains. She is convinced that the studio changed her life and made her a different person. It was Fields who spent years writing the nomination for Perlman’s 2016 Missouri Council of Arts Award. Last month, Perlman received the award from Missouri’s First Lady Georganne Nixon at the Capitol Rotunda in Jefferson City surrounded by friends and colleagues who traveled from far and wide to celebrate with her. Perlman’s name is now listed among the Missouri Arts Council’s long list of “Arts Heroes.” When asked, “Where do you study?” Perlman’s students perk up and proudly say, “I study with Halcyone Perlman,” not unlike someone who would say, “I study with the New York Ballet” or “I study with the Bolshoi,” because Halcyone Ewalt Perlman has helped keep excellent classical ballet alive in Columbia for five decades. Her ballet school now occupies an upstairs suite at the Village of Cherry Hill and is still producing first-rate dancers. Perhaps her long-running success can be attributed to the fact that she’s still the same creative and classy gentlewoman that her colleagues and loyal students have always loved and respected. According to Stoy, “She’s so generous and gracious – no rivalry – because that’s not what a gentle woman would do.” v Prime Magazine April 2016

Reader Submission

Back in the Saddle, Again

BY JACK WAX Jack Wax is a Columbia resident and recently submitted this essay on biking. I stopped riding a bike when I didn’t want anyone to think of me as a child. When I was 14, I got off my bike and started walking, hitchhiking or begging my older brother for a ride when I needed to go somewhere too far to walk. It would be more than 50 years before I would ride unembarrassed and smiling with the simple pleasure of pedaling along. As a child, I had learned to ride a tiny two-wheeler with wheels not much bigger than a tricycle’s. I had to pedal constantly to keep up with my older brother and the other kids in the neighborhood. Coincidentally, it was my older brother who got me started riding again. Because I don’t live far from the Katy Trail, I had tried riding a couple times. But I didn’t like it. Riding for more than a few minutes would tire my legs, hurt my butt and cramp my neck and shoulders. My brother had already rediscovered the joys of riding a bike and had recently upgraded to a better bike. Just as he had passed down shirts he had outgrown or baseball gloves that he had worn out, he passed down his old bike to me. I wanted to enjoy riding a bike, but my body wouldn’t let me. Maybe my joints were too creaky. Maybe I had spent too many years hunched over a computer, sitting at a desk in an office. I kept trying. I bought a pair of padded bicycle shorts, and the shorts made sitting on the seat more comfortable. After pushing myself to go a few miles at a time, my legs got stronger and didn’t hurt. I bought some handle attachments that helped me sit more upright, and my shoulders and neck stopped aching. Before I knew it, I was enjoying going for bike rides. That was three years ago. Since then, bicycling has become an important pleasure in my life. I don’t think of it as only an exercise (although I know it is). I don’t consider it a sport (which it could be). It’s a pleasure – pure and simple. Good for the body, mind and spirit.

April 2016 Prime Magazine

At the age of 65, Jack Wax has rediscovered the joy of biking. Although I sometimes ride on the streets of Columbia, mostly I ride on the Katy Trail. Cruising along the trail is about as close as a person can get to actually flying. On a bike, you can bend the law of gravity. You’re moving forward – gliding into the wind or, maybe, pedaling, but at times it’s almost effortless. I know that my body weighs the same sitting on a bike as sitting in a car, but when my legs pedal rhythmically and I sense myself moving along, I feel like I’m starting to float. Riding my bike gives me that same lift, that same sense of buoyancy, as swimming through water. Riding changes my mental perspective as well as my body chemistry. I may be feeling tired or a bit unsettled (meaning grumpy) before getting on my bike. Within seconds, I transition from the regular

world into a different dimension. There’s nothing wrong with my regular world. I feel more than pretty good about just about everything. But do I feel fantastic and bubbling over with energy at age 65? Is my blood pounding through my arteries? Am I feeling as brand-spanking new as a 20-year-old? Well, when I get on my bike, I do. It’s not exactly a fountain of youth, but the aerobic workout gets my 65-yearold juices flowing. My endorphin level spikes and I shake off any sluggishness I may have been dragging around. It clears my arteries as well as my mind. Am I tempting you? Are you thinking that maybe bicycling sounds like a piece of fun that you’ve left behind in your childhood? Unfortunately, you’re probably thinking that you have more important or pressing things to do. It

takes about an hour or even more to go on a decent bike ride, and who has time to spare? I used to think like that too. I have come to believe that riding a bike is the opposite of a waste of time. When you waste time, you do something that is against your nature –like sitting at a desk for eight hours a day or staring over a steering wheel and speeding past the seasons. As a result, wasting time makes you feel empty, foolish or used. I never feel empty or foolish after a bike ride. I feel relaxed. My body and mind hum with contentment. I know, without having to justify it to myself, that taking the time to ride a bike is as important as taking time to eat or sleep. A bonus to riding along the Katy Trail is that in addition to the natural surroundings – the trees, creeks, cliffs and Missouri River – you’re in a vacation environment. Everyone you see is on a mini-vacation, if even for 15 minutes. People aren’t wearing their work-weary expressions. Beneath the trees that shelter the trail, you are 10 times as likely to see a smiling face or a peaceful demeanor than a scowl.

I would be misleading you if I mentioned only the obvious pleasures of riding. There is more. Some things only seem simple, and riding a bike is one of them. Any activity that can push time aside and tunnel you through space can’t be called simple. Moments spent riding occur outside the usual stream of time. Minutes lose their power to niggle at your life, and years trail behind you in the dust. You have neither past nor future, only the beautiful present. As if such an experience weren’t enough, riding also jolts your sense of place and distance. You may have driven your car along a street a thousand times. You know that street, the houses, the lawns, the usual parked cars. Except you don’t really. You have only experienced the street by glancing at it while encased in a steel, soundproof box, moving along at 20 or more miles per hour. You have viewed the scene without being part of it. Riding a bike along the same street changes your experience of that street completely. You become a part of the landscape and neighborhood. You can hear birds, dogs, children and rustling leafs; smell the grass; and be aware of doors opening and closing and people coming and going.

Riding to do chores brings yet another alteration in the time-space continuum. Traveling via car, you start at home, then arrive at your destination in much the same mood and frame of mind as you left. You might be a bit more aggravated, depending on the traffic. A bike ride to the same destination along the same route isn’t a parallel journey. It takes longer, but the time goes quicker. Your bike has freed you from the petroleum-eating, fume-spuming, worldisolating experience of a car ride. If a car ride is the black hole of experience, a bike ride is a tunnel away from that black hole. Going through that tunnel somehow flips you into a much healthier, more pleasant universe – the very same one you experienced as a child. Only then, you didn’t really appreciate it. I have sat long enough before this computer screen. It’s sunny outside, and for the past few days it has rained, keeping me from my bike. I think I’ll make time for a ride later. After all, I’ve lost about 50 years driving cars, and I’m not getting any younger – except, that is, when I’m riding my bike. v

Prime Magazine April 2016

Faces And Places 1

2016 Founders Day Celebration The Boone County Chapter of the Mizzou Alumni Association held its annual Founders Day celebration at Shakespeareâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s South on Feb. 6. The scores of alumni enjoyed pizza and beer as they watched the Tigers take on Alabama. 1. Jim Schepers, Joe Whitworth and Ross Smith 2. Kathryn Roberts and Mary Stixrud 3. Sandra Norton, Charmian Boyle and Nancy Badger 4. Emily Frazier, Robert E. Frazier and Judith Fitzgerald Miller 5. Alan and Phyllis Ketring 6. Rhonda Jones and Michael Nichols PHOTOS BY NANCY TOALSON AND WALLY PFEFFER, MIZZOUWALLY@COMPUSERVE.COM

April 2016 Prime Magazine

fun & games solved Challenge your brain with this month’s puzzles found on Pages 26-28. Cryptogram Answer “My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece” - Claude Monet

Crossword Puzzle

Sudoku Puzzle

Prime Magazine April 2016

Columbia Confidential: Publisher Fred Parry On The Issues Columbia Is Talking About

Better Safe Than Sorry

A recent Inside Columbia survey of more than 1,000 residents indicates that 62 percent of Columbians feel less safe in their homes and neighborhoods than they did just five years ago. The FBI’s newly released report on violent crime in Columbia reveals that those fears may be justified. According to the latest FBI Uniform Crime Report, incidences of violent crime in Columbia increased from 410 incidents in 2014 to 600 in 2015 — a 46 percent jump in just one year. A closer look at the numbers shows that much of the increase can be attributed to a rise in aggravated assaults. In 2014, there were 226 reported incidents compared to 376 in 2015. Investigated rapes increased from 63 in 2014 to 82 last year. Robberies increased from 116 to 141. Property crimes show a similar increase — Columbians reported 84 more burglaries in 2015 than in 2014. Motor vehicle thefts increased by 58 in 2015. There is much more to the story, of course, than just the numbers. Police officials claim our local police force is understaffed by as many as 50 officers. At least 68 percent of Columbians surveyed share that sentiment, agreeing that there are not enough police officers on the city’s streets. Despite this consensus, voters soundly rejected a ballot measure in 2014 that would have increased property taxes to hire as many as 40 new cops. If you ask prosecutors and local police about the reported increase in crime statistics, they’ll quickly point to two principle causes for the jump: overcrowded jails and gangs. There are many who believe the local judges in the 13th Circuit think the Boone County Jail is too full. In a deliberate attempt to ease the overcrowding, judges tend to be more lenient with “minor” offenders, allowing them to forgo jail time. Consequently, many frequent offenders are back on the streets committing more crimes within hours of appearing before a judge. Law enforcement agencies are understandably frustrated by this constant churn of criminals in and out of the legal system. Another contributor to Columbia’s growing crime rate is tied to the increasing presence of organized gangs in St. Louis and Kansas City. Unfortunately, both cities consistently rank in the top tier of American cities for drug and criminal activity. The spillover of illegal activity from the east and the west is creeping into mid-Missouri. Local news outlets have reported an increase in out-of-towners facing charges in Boone

April 2016 Prime Magazine

County for everything from drugs to murder. Missouri Highway Patrol officials cite an increased amount of drug trafficking along Interstate 70, which has taken on a new nickname — “The Heroine Highway.” Cops will tell you it’s not unusual for a routine traffic stop to yield as much as 75 pounds of drugs. There are no easy solutions to these problems. Don’t assume that just because voters rejected a property tax increase to pay for more police officers that they don’t support the idea of hiring more cops. Perhaps we should look at alternative sources of funding. Some will cite a lack of confidence in leadership at the Columbia Police Department as their reason for not supporting a tax increase to hire more cops; others will tell you the city has misplaced priorities for spending. We could take another look at the capacity of the Boone County Jail. Is it really so overcrowded that local judges feel compelled to release offenders who truly deserve a night or two in jail? Are we inadvertently sending a message to drug dealers and thugs that their offenses aren’t worthy of appropriate consequences? What are the costs and benefits associated with housing these criminals in a neighboring county? There are many questions that must be addressed before a workable solution can be found. No solution will be possible without collaboration among local law enforcement agencies. Leadership from the Columbia Police Department, Boone County Sheriff ’s Department, University of Missouri Police and the Missouri Highway Patrol must be at the same table, sharing notes and devising strategies to combat crime in our community. While rank-andfile officers frequently interact in positive ways, there is room for improvement among their leaders. Reducing Columbia’s violent crime rate should be at the top of this community’s list of priorities. v

Fred Parry, fred@insidecolumbia.net

Prime Magazine April 2016

INSIDE COLUMBIAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PRIME OutFront Communications, LLC 1900 N. Providence Road, Suite 324, Columbia, MO 65202

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage

PAID

Columbia, MO Permit 286